Lately I have been wondering about my goals. What are they? Have I given any thought to changing them? How many pieces am I supposed to have created, for example? As many as I can? Has my work evolved? Am I happy with the creative direction? Should I have accomplished more after close to 15 years of working on these pieces? Is recognition all that important? What does “success” actually mean?
These goals inspire thoughts. And some of these thoughts are “stickier” than others. Should a piece I am working on be vertical or horizontal? Easy to decide and let go of. Is this piece “done”? Much more difficult to know for sure.
Goals are as much about life as they are about my work: to learn how not to cling; to understand that the act of creating is largely an act of faith; to reduce thinking too much as thinking can get in the way; and if something doesn’t work out, I just need to let go. It’s a lesson and not a failure. It just wasn’t meant to be.
In the end, it’s a process. And like most things in life, it’s the process that’s important and that should help me achieve my goals.
